Kurosawa's Rashomon: A Vanished City, a Lost Brother, and the Voice Inside His Iconic Films
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.46 (830 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 1681775638 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 256 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-01-02 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
"Fascinating and uncannily timely" according to LiteraryTriathlete. Fascinating and uncannily timely. Kurosawa's focus on truth and the "crime" of inaction and complicity resonate in our own era. Anderer's revelations with regards to his brother provides a haunting undercurrent. Pre-War Tokyo in the 1920's and 19Fascinating and uncannily timely Fascinating and uncannily timely. Kurosawa's focus on truth and the "crime" of inaction and complicity resonate in our own era. Anderer's revelations with regards to his brother provides a haunting undercurrent. Pre-War Tokyo in the 1920's and 1930's was every bit as dynamic and explosive artistically and culturally as Europe, something I had never realized until reading this book.. 0's was every bit as dynamic and explosive artistically and culturally as Europe, something I had never realized until reading this book.. Highly recommended. This is essential reading for anyone interested in Kurosawa's work and the political, cultural and social atmosphere that produced this seminal film. Full of fascinating detail about Kurosawa's personal life and relationship with his brother that will be new even for the most dedicated Kurosawa fan. And for the film buff new to Kurosawa, the book can serve as a helpful, deeply researched introduction to Kurosawa's world, his personal life and the unique moment in Japanese history that nurtured his genius. Highly recommended.. ":-)" according to Zangiku. this is a deeply flawed book. altho as a Kurosawa-lover i ended up loving it, a review is problematic for me as a trained academic & J-culture historian. it is a book for hard-core K-lovers only, i would suggest, & not for anybody else.the disclaimer in the afterword "this book does not presume to be a scholarly contribution" does not get the author off the hook. NO FOOTNOTES AT ALL is not excusable under any circumstances when referencing other writers on every :-) this is a deeply flawed book. altho as a Kurosawa-lover i ended up loving it, a review is problematic for me as a trained academic & J-culture historian. it is a book for hard-core K-lovers only, i would suggest, & not for anybody else.the disclaimer in the afterword "this book does not presume to be a scholarly contribution" does not get the author off the hook. NO FOOTNOTES AT ALL is not excusable under any circumstances when referencing other writers on every 3rd page. it is not only lazy & dishonorable, but also treats readers like idiots with no interest in learning more. why would we be read. rd page. it is not only lazy & dishonorable, but also treats readers like idiots with no interest in learning more. why would we be read
“A well-researched study that is part biography of Kurosawa, part cultural history of modern Japan and part film monograph. His book gives a rich sense of the turbulent modernist currents and formidable pre-war film culture that nurtured Kurosawa’s art, and movingly conveys just how much was at stake in every frame of his greatest works.” - Geoffrey O’Brien, author of 'Stolen Glimpses'. A sensitive investigationAnderer also traces other dark forces in Kurosawa's life and ‘the hollowed-out emptiness’ of postwar Japan. Anderer turns that Rashomon effect on the film itself, presenting the inspirations and histories that went into its creation, including the pivotal consequences of the youthful double suicide of Kurosawa’s beloved older brother and his lover, writer Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s original texts, Japanese film history, Kurosawa’s films before and after, important collaborators’ rem
We encounter Tokyo, Kurosawa’s birthplace, which would be destroyed twice before his eyes; explore early twentieth-century Japan amid sweeping cross-cultural changes; and confront profound family tragedy alongside the horror of war. When the city is destroyed again, in the fire-bombings of 1945, Anderer reveals how Kurosawa grappled with the trauma of war and its aftermath, and forged his artistic vision. Paul Anderer looks back at Kurosawa before he became famous, taking us into the turbulent world that made him. Kurosawa’s Rashomon uncovers how a film like Rashomon came to be, and why it endures to illuminate the shadows and the challenges of our present.. A groundbreaking investigation into the early life of the iconic Akira Kurosawa in connection to his most famous filmtaking us deeper into Kurosawa and his world.Although he is a filmmaker of international renown, Kurosawa and the story of his formative years remain as enigmatic as his own Rashomon. From these multiple angles we see how Kurosawa’s life and work speak to the epic narrative of modern Japan’s rise and fall.W
He teaches courses on Japanese literature and film at Columbia, where he is the Mack Professor of Humanities. Paul Anderer is the author of Other Worlds: Arishima Takeo and the Bounds of Modern Japanese Fiction, andLiterature of the Lost Home: Kobayashi Hideo?Literary Criticism, 1924-1939. He has written widely on Tokyo and the culture of cities. Paul Anderer lives in New York City.